As was written on BMG the other day, Boston 2024 had its first public appearance on Monday, and the reviews aren’t great. One of the most frequently cited parts of Boston Globe’s “Off the Page” forum on Monday was when Juliette Kayyem admitted that she has not even read the city’s bid herself.
Joan Vennochi showed her skepticism of Boston 2024 in her column in the Globe today: “The first official event of the 2024 Boston Olympics has been unveiled. It’s called leap of faith, and in true Olympic fashion, a giant one is required.”
In an interview on the Scrum yesterday, Mayor Walsh–a booster, not skeptic–claimed that there would be no need for a vote on the Olympic bid because Bostonians already support it:
I don’t necessarily think we need to vote on it. I’ve seen polling numbers where the majority of Bostonians are in favor of the Olympics. They’re excited about the possibility of the Olympics. I haven’t really heard from anybody, other than a few people from No Boston Olympics that have said their opposed to it.
The most recent public poll that I could fine was from June, and it did not show a majority of Bostonians supporting the Olympics. It showed a very narrow plurality the Olympic bid, but the more people heard about it, the lower the support was.
Forty-seven percent back the Olympic bid, according to the survey, while 43 percent are opposed. And the gap, it seems, is only narrowing.
The Globe survey of 604 likely Massachusetts voters, conducted over the last two weeks, found support declining sharply over time — just as media coverage of the bid was ramping up.
Voters are “open to [the Olympic bid] today, but the more they think about it, the more questions they have,” said John Della Volpe, chief executive of SocialSphere Inc., which conducted the poll for the Globe.
…
After gauging initial support for the Olympic bid, the Globe presented respondents with the leading arguments on both sides: Backers say the Games will leave a lasting economic legacy and bind the community together, while critics argue it will squander billions better spent on education, housing, and transportation.
Hearing that, respondents’ already tenuous support for the Olympic bid turned upside down: Twice as many said they agree with the opposition’s argument.
The poll also broke down the state results by region and found that those in Metro Boston were opposed to hosting the Olympics 51% to 38%.
If Mayor Walsh has any polls indicating otherwise, he should release them. If not, maybe he should start talking with the people of Boston to find out what they think.
That seems pretty basic to me and is what’s happening in most of the other democracies looking at hosting the Olympics around the world today.
Before they even submit the proposal, which is a wise way of going about it. If folks are against the Games prior to submitting a bid-might as well save the millions of dollars and political capital wasted on a bid with eroding public support.
http://www.hostcity.net/event-bidding-news/berlin-hold-olympic-2024-referendum-mayor-confirms-exit-plan